At the Berlinale, Art Is Political. Except on Palestine.

How the Berlinale Jury’s Turn to “Neutrality” Exposed the Limits of Solidarity in Germany’s Cultural Sphere

Wim Wenders at the Berlinale press conference (screenshot by Tilo Jung)

Of course film is political. Any art form that aspires to be more than décor will, sooner or later, collide with power. What has been peculiar in recent days is the idea that stating film’s political potential is somehow seen as provocative — as if acknowledging the fact that cinema …